Chechnya Line Time
2004 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Russia
The UNHCR continued to be concerned about the situation of asylum seekers and refugees at Moscow's Sheremetyevo 2 airport. The authorities systematically deported improperly documented passengers, including persons who demonstrated a well founded fear of persecution in their countries of origin. Legally bound to provide food and emergency medical care for undocumented travelers, the airlines returned them to their point of departure as quickly as possible; airlines were fined if an undocumented passenger was admitted to the country but not if the passenger was returned to the country of origin. The treatment of asylum seekers in the transit zone reportedly was harsh. The UNHCR received reports of physical and verbal abuse of transit passengers by police officers and Aeroflot airline employees. During the year, at least four persons were stranded in the transit zone of Sheremetyevo 2 airport for more than 3 months while three cases involving six persons were resettled by the UNHCR to an ... [Read More]
Russia Public Announcement
This Public Announcement is being updated to remind American citizens traveling or living in Russia that there remains a heightened potential for terrorist actions, including attacks against civilians. This situation is likely to continue for some time. This supersedes the public announcement of October 27, 2004 and expires on September 30, 2005. Acts of terrorism including bombings and hostage taking have occurred in Russia over the last several years. Bombings have ... [Read More]
Russia
Correctional labor colonies (ITK's) hold the bulk of the nation's convicts. There are 749 ITK's, which are as crowded as SIZO's. Guards reportedly severely discipline prisoners to break down resistance; at times guards humiliated, beat, and starved prisoners. According to the PCPR, conditions in the ITK's are better than in the SIZO's to the extent that there is fresh air. In the timber correctional colonies, where hardened criminals serve their time, beatings, torture, and rape by guards reportedly were common. On September 11, procurators in Perm announced that they had brought charges of mistreating inmates against Special Forces Commander Sergey Bromberg, head of the strict regime prison colony at Chepets. Along with seven masked members of his unit, Bromberg was suspected of beating inmates at the prison colony. In October the Procurator announced that he had completed his investigation; however, there were no reports that a trial had begun by year's end. The country's "prisons"-- ... [Read More]
Russia
The Constitution provides for freedom of association, and the Government respects this right in practice. Public organizations must register their bylaws and the names of their leaders with the Ministry of Justice. In 1995 a registration law was passed specifying that organizations had until June 1999 to reregister. When the deadline expired on July 1, some human rights activists expressed deep concern that an estimated 10,000 NGO's would be vulnerable to possible "liquidation" (closure by court order) by local authorities who were hostile to human rights or opposition political activity. In a move which human rights activists marked as a potentially serious blow to freedom of association, in November the Federation Council rejected a bill that was passed by the Duma to extend the reregistration deadline by 1 year. To date the Ministry of Justice maintains that there were not a large number of liquidations, as a result of the passing deadline. NGO's currently are studying the situation ... [Read More]
Department of State Washington File: Text: Abide by International Humanitarian Law in Conflicts, U.S. Urges
Mr. Moderator, I would like to devote part of my time to invite all delegates to join the delegation of the United States of America in a moment of silence in solidarity with today's victims of terror. Thank you. ... [[[[3-TOP (do not delete this line)-3]]]] ... These times of increasing terror challenge the world. Terror organizations challenge our comfort and our principles. The United States will continue to take seriously the need to question terrorists who have information that can save lives. But we will not compromise the rule of law or the values and principles that make us strong. Torture is wrong no matter where it occurs, and the United States will continue to lead the fight to eliminate it everywhere. ... [Read More]
Russia
The Constitution provides for freedom of association, and the Government generally respects this right in practice. Public organizations must register their bylaws and the names of their leaders with the Ministry of Justice. A 1995 registration law specified that organizations had until July 1999 to reregister. When the deadline expired, some human rights monitors expressed concern that an estimated 10,000 NGO's would be vulnerable to possible "liquidation" (elimination of juridical status by court order) by local authorities who were hostile to human rights or opposition political activity. In November 1999, the Federation Council rejected a bill passed by the Duma to extend the reregistration deadline by a year, a move which human rights activists marked as a potentially serious blow to freedom of association. The Ministry of Justice maintained that there were not a large number of liquidations as a result of the passing deadline. ... [Read More]
U.S.-Russia Relations in Putin's Second Term
Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, I am delighted to be with you this morning to discuss the current state of U.S.-Russian relations and the prospects for their evolution. Hardly a day goes by without our addressing aspects of this important relationship in one way or another, and yet the occasions for reflecting seriously on its entirety are surprisingly few. I especially value the chance to share my thoughts with you this morning on where we are in the relationship and where we are headed -- and to hear your comments and questions. The time is certainly right, now that the Russian presidential election is behind us and the shape of the new Russian administration has become clear. Let me begin with a brief assessment of where we are at present. As I reported to your Subcommittee on Europe earlier this month, we have ma ... [Read More]
Eurasia Overview
Russia maintains diplomatic relations and historically good ties with all the states on the US State Sponsors of Terrorism List. For example, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov paid a working visit to Syria in July 2003, and Hassan Rohani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, visited Moscow in November 2003. Although Russia has never condoned Palestinian terrorist acts, Russian officials do not necessarily view all Palestinian actions as inherently terrorist in nature and sometimes argue that armed resistance is justified against an Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory. Nevertheless, the Government of Russia firmly opposes state-sponsored terrorism and supports international initiatives to combat it. The Russian Government maintains that its relationships with states on the US terrorism list serve as a positive influence that has -- or may have -- moderated or diminished these governments’ support for terrorist groups. ... [Read More]
Department of State Washington File: Transcript: Rice Remarks on Terrorist Groups and the "Evil Axis"
First of all, all the way back at Ljubljana, which is when President Putin and President Bush met for the first time, President Bush said that he wanted to seek a new relationship with Russia that was more in line with the post Cold War era, and in line with a Russia that is in transition to better times for its people. ... Imagine for a moment that someone had sat you down on September 10th, placed a tape in your VCR and told you that, here's what the President's next State of the Union Address is going to sound like. Each of us placed in those circumstances would have reacted in two ways, both at the same time. As we heard him, and as we viewed the window through which we had just climbed, our stomachs would have churned with the knowledge that our nation and the world had suffered such a great catastrophe. And behind our veil of ignorance, we would have been driven and, in fact, reluctant at the same time to ask the questions, who and what and where and particularly why September 11th. ... [Read More]
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